Candidates running for office in any election should realize that most people don’t want to hear negative statements about the opposition. The public wants to hear the positive things that the candidate is going to accomplish when elected.
The most successful and popular office holders are those who realize that although their victory might be due to a party or a group that backed them, that once elected, they represent all their constituents equally.
In today’s divisive political environment at the national level, non-partisanship barely exists, if at all. There is a word, not often heard today, that describes the type of leader who brings people together, and whose accomplishments are exemplary. That word, “statesman,” represents the type of leader we should seek.
A statesman is defined as “a person who exhibits great wisdom and ability in directing the affairs of government or in dealing with important public issues.” But statesmanship has all but disappeared from the national political landscape.
Because local elections are usually non-partisan, it should be easier to find these statesmanlike qualities among our Council members or on the School Board. And even in our statewide elections, although candidates are represented by a political party, they are closer to their constituents than national office holders, and the most successful ones are those who appear non-partisan once they are in office.
Lynn Lorenz
Newport Beach
